Top 5 Women Jockeys in Horse Racing History

Top 5 Women Jockeys in Horse Racing History

Horse racing is often thought to be synonymous with male jockeys but it’s one of the few sports where both men and women can compete against each other, bridging the gender gap. The horse racing industry has an abundance of female jockeys who have enjoyed enormous success in the sport and the numbers keep rising. These are five of the top female jockeys throughout racing history, from retired racers to those still competing, that have earned great titles and wins over the course of their careers. At Timeform they love gambling which horse will win, no matter the gender.

Julie Krone

Julie Krone is an American jockey who became famous in 1993 when she won the Belmont Stakes and became the first female jockey to win an event in the U.S. Triple Crown. She’s also the first woman to be included in the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in 2000. Krone won the Breeders’ Cup in 2003, the first woman to achieve this feat.

Nina Carberry

Nina Carberry comes from a racing family and she had her first taste of success when she won the Cheltenham Festival and recorded four Cross Country Handicap Chase victories at the Festival on Heads on the Ground in 2007. Now retired, Carberry left the sport on a high when she won on Josie’s Order on the last day of the Punchestown Festival.

Kayla Stra

Kayla Stra began her racing career in Australia before competing in the U.S. as well later on. She began riding from just 8 years old and worked at racing stables before earning her certificate in racing. Her biggest win was in 2005 when she won the City of Marion Stakes on Navy Shaker. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg for Stra, who has over 1700 wins to her name. After a brief break to have her son, Stra returned to professional racing in 2013 to continue earning success with her horse racing career.

Katie Walsh

Walsh has experienced masses of success over the course of her career, winning her first ever race on Hannon in 2003 at Gowran Park. Poker De Sivola and Thousand Stars gave Walsh a double win in 2010 at Cheltenham Festival and she also became the third female winner in history of the Irish National on Thunder and Roses. In 2012, she came in third in that year’s Grand National on Seabass – the highest finish for a female competitor.

Lizzie Kelly

A jumps jockey, Lizzie Kelly created a moment of history in 2015 by becoming the first woman to win a Grade One jumps race in Britain on Tea for Two. From there, her career blossomed with a further Grade One success on the same horse, winning the richest handicap hurdle in Europe – the Betfair Hurdle on Agrapart at Newbury. At just 25 years old and the beginning of her career, Kelly also became the second woman to ride in the Cheltenham Gold Cup on Tea for Two, before also winning the Cheltenham Festival in 2017 on Coo Star Sivola.